AAU Practice Report: Elite 24
AAU basketball has kicked off and for most programs, tryouts are over and the teams are starting to get accustomed to playing with each other again. We had the opportunity to drop by and watch the tail end of practice…
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Continue ReadingAAU basketball has kicked off and for most programs, tryouts are over and the teams are starting to get accustomed to playing with each other again. We had the opportunity to drop by and watch the tail end of practice for Elite 24 on Tuesday night. Head coach Greg Dundon has most of his 16U group back from last year but has added some new pieces for this upcoming spring.
Elite 24 will be playing on the Under Armor Rise circuit this spring and summer under the name Cascadia. Of note on Tuesday night, Zach Rivers (2019 Wilsonville HS) was out due to a broken foot but here are some others that made an impression on us during the time we watched:
Brian Goracke (2020 Churchill HS) – Goracke made the drive up from Eugene for practice. Growing up as a post, the 6-foot-5 junior has been working on his perimeter game and he was really stroking the ball well from the outside. A tremendous athlete, Goracke was able to showcase that as well on drives to the rack.
Samaje Morgan (2022 Churchill HS) – Morgan came up with Churchill teammate Goracke. He’s definitely not big – the freshman is listed at 5-foot-8 – but he’s got wiry strength for his size and he’s very, very quick. Morgan got up and down the floor like a blur and created for his teammates. Despite his size and youth, he plays with very little fear.
Micah Garrett (2020 West Linn HS) – Garrett injured his ankle in West Linn’s first post-season game and was out for the second one, but he didn’t seem to show any ill effects in this practice. The 6-foot-3 junior ran up and down the court well and hit a couple of his now-patented pull-up jumpers. We didn’t really see him attack the basket but it will be interesting to see if he balances that with the new-found jumper he showed this year.
Justin Bieker (2019 Jesuit HS) – Bieker is playing this spring as an unsigned senior in a final attempt to showcase himself in front of college coaches after helping Jesuit win the 6A state title. The 6-foot-5 lefty shot it pretty well from mid-range and distance and created off the dribble on a couple of occasions.
Riley Nichol (2019 Stayton HS) – Nichol also returns to Elite 24 from last year’s squad as an unsigned senior. Well-built at 6-foot-7, he will provide muscle for the team in the paint but also has a nice looking face-up jumper.
Gaige Ainslie (2020 Central Catholic HS) – Ainslie is lean but his 6-foot-8 size will be put to use inside on both ends. He moved well up and down the floor and was able to use his length to affect some shot attempts in the paint. He also showed some good touch around the basket and hit a couple of face-up threes.
Rayven Turner (2020 TBA) – Turner didn’t play the second half of the year after leaving Jefferson during Christmas break. It’s clear he didn’t just sit around as his body looks to be in prime shape and he shot the ball confidently and fluidly from the perimeter. We caught up with Turner for the latest and will post it soon.
Ethan McEachern (2021 Blair Academy-NJ) – McEachern is a Lake Oswego native who played at Lakeridge in 2017-18 but transferred to Blair Academy in New Jersey and reclassified to the Class of 2021. It’s clear that his time on the East Coast has been beneficial as visibly he looks like he has hit the weight room hard. He efficiently ran the point and hit a few perimeter jumpers.